Tech Insider
The sample collector from NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft touching the rocky surface of the asteroid Bennu
NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collects a sample from an asteroid.

NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

  • The second moon that Earth has captured in its orbit this month is an asteroid called 2024 PT5.
  • Mini-moons like this could be ideal targets for asteroid mining to send humans deeper into space.
  • Space mining could be huge, since some asteroids are worth more than our entire global economy.

The second moon that Earth now has for two months may seem like just a fun curiosity, but it's also a sneak peek at a future space industry that could change our global economy.

Tags
Science, moon, Asteroids, asteroid-mining, Space
Source
Mini-moons like the one Earth just captured could be huge business opportunities